Milie steering damper dimensions?

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Yellowperil · #16 Post by **Yellowperil** » Sun Feb 16, 2014 7:40 pm

I agree, I have a scorpion can on this one.
In my opinion one of Hondas finest engine designs of all time, second only to the mighty honda RC166 for sound and probably a lot more reliable!
The NC21 is a great road bike, enough power to have fun and awesome quick cornering ability give it a purposeful yet licence friendly level of fun.
I paid less than £300 for this bike 3 years ago after the bodywork and new cycle parts I reckon it's probaly standing me in at about £600.

#17 Post by **mangocrazy** » Sun Feb 16, 2014 9:28 pm

You've really got me thinking now - how much does a tidy-ish NC21 go for? I was thinking about a KTM 690R for backroads scratching fun at legal(ish) speeds, but the cost of admission is about £7-8k. An NC21 wouldn't be much slower and would be a hoot and a half. And affordable.

Hmmm.... I sense a project gestating...

Yellowperil · #18 Post by **Yellowperil** » Thu Feb 20, 2014 9:27 pm

A tidy one could be picked up for 600 or so, budget for a full service and expect to need to do some cosmetic work after all these bikes are getting on for 30 years old now, but because Honda made them properly they tend to last!

#19 Post by **mangocrazy** » Thu Feb 20, 2014 10:34 pm

Yellowperil wrote:A tidy one could be picked up for 600 or so, budget for a full service and expect to need to do some cosmetic work after all these bikes are getting on for 30 years old now, but because Honda made them properly they tend to last!

That sounds right on the money. I've registered on 400greybike.com and am keeping an eye out on ebay. Just need to wait now, I guess.

These bikes (like the bigger VFR750) were made at a time when Honda really need to make a statement about reliability and quality after the debacle with the chocolate cam VF750, so they were definitely over-engineered. And they sound fantastic... Does the NC21 have the 'big bang' firing configuration of the NC30, or is it the 180/270 degree crank of the first generation VFR750?

Yellowperil · #20 Post by **Yellowperil** » Fri Feb 21, 2014 10:38 pm

The nc21 I believe is 180 degree but sounds better for it and the power is still 59bhp so there's nothing in it, in stock form!
The first generation V4s where problematic due to poorly designed cam chain tensioners and suffered from ill prepared dealers that didn't know how to work on them properly, the best of the old V4s was the now extremely rare VF1000R which actually had gear driven cams and was very race focused including quick release front wheel.
A great book to read if your interested in the history of the V4s is a Haynes book called "Honda's V Force" which gives great detail on how the technologie was improved over the years.

Aladinsaneuk · #21 Post by **Aladinsaneuk** » Fri Feb 21, 2014 10:56 pm

vfr1000

first bike i ever got close to 150 on - on a track (private) of course

had been giving it some serious welly from thorpe down towards loddon - they are bend names on the afor mentioned private track - was getting damn close and i felt / saw a few bits of rain / drizzle / wet stuff....

i backed off

#22 Post by **mangocrazy** » Sat Feb 22, 2014 12:25 am

Yellowperil wrote:The nc21 I believe is 180 degree but sounds better for it and the power is still 59bhp so there's nothing in it, in stock form!
The first generation V4s where problematic due to poorly designed cam chain tensioners and suffered from ill prepared dealers that didn't know how to work on them properly, the best of the old V4s was the now extremely rare VF1000R which actually had gear driven cams and was very race focused including quick release front wheel.
A great book to read if your interested in the history of the V4s is a Haynes book called "Honda's V Force" which gives great detail on how the technologie was improved over the years.

Yes, I've got that book - fascinating read; Jules Ryder (of Eurosport commentating fame) wrote it. I remember the VF1000R - big lairy beast they were, apparently weighed around 240kg dry! I remember Tony Middlehurst of Superbike magazine being less than complimentary about it...

D-Rider · #23 Post by **D-Rider** » Sat Feb 22, 2014 10:32 am

A work colleague of mine had a VF1000R - looked a great bit of kit.

I had a VF750 for a while - that looked good (for the time) but was a nasty pile of crap with chocolate cams and a 16" front wheel that made the handling very disconcerting.

I've always fancied one of the 400 V4s though .... little jewels.

Aladinsaneuk · #24 Post by **Aladinsaneuk** » Sat Feb 22, 2014 11:22 am

yes, was a heavy SoB

but, as we had cut our teeth on nothing bigger than a cb750k7 etc... it was frightening how modern it felt then

It was actually a friends bike - but as i had a car at the time, and he had a girl friend, then we used to trade vehicles for an evening.....